


Cats, Meet Burglar

by JennaTalbot



Category: Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Cats!, F/M, First Meeting, SoC Secret Santa 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-19 20:30:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13131579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JennaTalbot/pseuds/JennaTalbot
Summary: First meetings can be... interesting. As can second meetings. Even more so when two cats and minor crime are involved.





	Cats, Meet Burglar

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas, from your SoC Secret Santa! I hope you like it!

Inej froze, listening hard. She strained her ears, but didn’t hear anything else. Looking around her room in the dark, she was able to make out the curled up forms of Petyr and Alina, nestled into their basket. Frowning, she closed her eyes again and nestled further into her blankets. 

But a moment later, her eyes were wide open again. Inej  _ definitely  _ heard something that time. And if she wasn’t mistaken… that was definitely the sound of her front door closing.

Inej took a deep breath and pulled a knife out of the top drawer of her nightstand. It had been a gift from her father when she moved into a cheap apartment by herself, something neither of her parents were too fond of.

She gripped the handle and slid out of bed, ghosting silently across the hardwood floor. Alina sat up, her dark eyes tracking Inej’s movement across the room. Inej silently willed her to stay put. 

Slowly, Inej twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. Thankfully she had just greased the hinges. They had been awful until recently, and she sent up a silent prayer for the fact that she had finally gotten around to that. 

She inched her way out of the door, grateful that there wasn’t a straight line of sight from her door to the front door in question. Inej paused, listening. It was faint, but those were definitely footsteps. Someone was making their way across her living room. They would have their back to her, so it was now or never.

Inej crept out around the corner and paused. There was a tall figure in all black making its way across her living room. She knew someone was in her apartment, but seeing them there made it too real. Inej wasn’t sure whether to laugh or sob, so she did neither.

Instead, she just watched as the figure made its way across the admittedly small room with a slight limp, not stopping for anything. Inej didn’t have a lot of possessions worth stealing, but whoever this was didn’t seem to be interested in taking anything with them. Instead, they came to a stop at the window and started fumbling for the locks.

A streak of black startled Inej as it raced by. Petyr jumped up onto the back of the couch and across the room, landing silently on the table next to the window the figure was standing at. 

Inej watched as the person jumped slightly, and then hesitated for a moment before reaching a hand towards Petyr. She laughed inwardly. 

Petyr was a fluffy monstrosity of a cat, a Maine coon that she had adopted when no one else would. He had been known to draw blood on more than one occasion, and Inej was convinced his favorite past time was making people cry. He hated nearly everyone and everything, and his green eyes would track Inej’s guests like prey. Inej was the only person he liked, and he only barely tolerated Alina, the kitten who was less than half of his size. She had told her parents he was better than any guard dog, and Inej was about to see her claims come to life.

But to her utter surprise, Petyr leaned into the touch of the gloves that the person had on and started  _ purring _ . The last time Inej heard him purr was… well, Inej wasn’t entirely sure she had ever heard him purr. 

She watched as the figure gave him another scratch and then went back to struggling with the window locks.

Curiosity finally got the better of her.

“You have to turn them both to the left and squeeze.”

The figure whirled around, and in the little light filtering in, Inej could see he was a man, probably not much older than she was.

Inej was still holding the knife, but she was leaning casually against the wall. She wasn’t actively threatening, but she was prepared to make a move if the need arose.  

“Care to explain?”

He smirked, realizing he had been caught. “We're neighbors. I was out running some… errands, and forgot my key, so I’m locked out. Your fire escape backs up to mine, so I figured I could get out your window and into my own.” 

“That’s not what I meant.” 

“What?”

Inej cleared her throat. “I meant for you to explain why my monster cat who hates everyone seems to actually  _ like  _ you.”

The confusion was plain on the man’s face. “I’m sorry?”

Inej laughed. “It’s a simple question. Why does my cat like you?”

He shook his head, the confusion still there. He took another look at Inej’s casual stance and the knife she was still firmly holding on to. “I have no idea. I’ve always gotten along with animals I suppose. Although, I do prefer dogs.”

Inej made a face at that. “Now I’m even more confused about why Petyr likes you.”

“Petyr,” he repeated. “And yet you’re not confused as to why a strange man is in your apartment at,” he glanced at the dim glow of the clock, “Nearly one in the morning?”

“Well, you didn’t take anything, and you haven’t tried to kill me yet. But if you really did want to get to the fire escape, all you had to do was ask.”

The man shrugged. “Asking isn’t really my style.”

“But breaking and entering is?” She countered.

Inej had to suppress a shiver at the grin she received in return.

After a moment of looking at her, and presumably determining she wasn’t a threat, he turned back around and followed her advice, turning both of the latches and squeezing down on the springs. 

The window slid open with just the slightest squeak.

“You should oil that,” he commented.

“I think I might leave it, in case you decide to come back. I’d like to know next time,” Inej countered with a smirk of her own.

He looked at her again and after a moment shook his head lightly. Petyr let out a rather demanding meow, and the man gave him another scratch behind his ears. Inej was annoyed at how unclawed he was. Half the time she tried to pet Petyr, her arm was left with angry red marks. 

“Thanks for letting me borrow your fire escape,” he grinned as he slid through the window.

Inej didn’t reply, just staring after him. Once she was sure he was gone, she crossed the room and closed the window, making sure to lock it. 

Then she crossed the room and locked the front door, which he had left open. She went back to her bedroom, but before getting in bed she went back out and checked both locks again. 

Satisfied, she finally climbed into bed, but left the knife on top of her nightstand. 

After a moment, Petyr jumped onto her bed, landing heavily on her legs. 

“Some good you were, you traitor,” she grumbled at him.

He just continued to stare at her, his green eyes piercing even in the dark.

“Useless lump of fur,” Inej informed him, shifting her legs under the blanket to move him. He meowed indignantly in response and jumped off of the bed, curling back into the basket next to Alina. 

Inej lay awake staring at the ceiling. Out of all the things that she had prepared for when moving into a new apartment alone, what just happened fit into none of them.

Her mind reeling, she eventually drifted off into sleep.

 

\----

 

There was a knock at the door, tentative at first. Kaz was fully prepared to just ignore it until a second knock came, much more insistent this time.

Sighing, he got up from the couch and crossed the living room, pulling the door open. He wasn’t expecting anyone, so he was a little curious as to who might be pounding on his door in the middle of the day.

He didn’t recognize the girl at first, but he did recognize the fluffy monstrosity that she was struggling to hold on to. 

As soon as the door was open, the cat freed himself from her grasp and ran past Kaz into his apartment.

“Petyr, we haven’t even asked him yet!” The girl exclaimed. A tiny white kitten poked its head out of her hoodie pocket.

“Look, I’m sorry for just showing up like this and you’re allowed to say no and I’ll go find that demon but I know Petyr likes you, so I was hoping you could help?”

Kaz raised an eyebrow. Her braid was a frayed, wild mess, and she was slightly out of breath. “Help with what?”

“The landlord called and said he’s coming by in twenty and well… he doesn’t know I have a cat, let alone two. And I don’t have the two thousand dollars to cover the fine if I get caught with them.”

“You want me to cat sit for you.”

She looked at him, dark eyes pleading. “I didn’t call the police or stab you when you broke into my apartment. I think it’s time you return the favor. It’ll only be for like an hour, and then I’ll come get them and you’ll never have to see me again if you don’t want. We’ll be square and we can just leave it at that. Please?”

Kaz sighed, but held his arms out for the kitten.

A grin split the girl’s face as she pulled the white kitten out of her pocket. “This is Alina, she’s actually very well behaved, although she likes to be in the middle of everything. Petyr is usually the one you have to look out for, but he hasn’t tried to kill you yet so I think you’re in the clear.” She stopped and checked the time on her phone. “I have to run, but thank you again, so much! I’ll be back for them soon, I promise!”

And without another word, she spun and ran down the hall, leaving Kaz standing in his doorway holding a tiny kitten.

He looked down at her. “Nice to meet you, I’m Kaz,” he said dryly as he closed the door behind him.

Petyr had already made himself comfortable on the leather couch, occupying the only sun spot in the apartment. 

Cautiously, Kaz settled next to him on the couch where he was before the girl and her cats showed up. Petyr regarded him lazily for a moment and then closed his eyes, as if deciding that Kaz wasn’t worth his time.

Kaz shrugged and set the kitten down next to her companion and turned back to the papers that he had been sorting through before. It was quiet for a few minutes, and he almost forgot the cats were there as he began running the numbers in his mind.

He started when Alina crawled into his lap, her tiny claws digging through his pants.

“No,” he told her as he picked her up and placed her back next to Petyr. The large cat opened one eye to glare at him, and Kaz just shrugged. But Alina immediately started crawling back towards Kaz. Once again, she climbed into his lap, and once again he lifted her off. As soon as her feet touched the couch, she was turned around and attempting to get back onto Kaz’s lap. He sighed heavily, waiting for her to settle and then shifted the kitten slightly so he could still have some semblance of movement. 

Hopefully, that girl would come back for her cats, and soon. Kaz wasn’t exactly in the market for animals right now.

 

\---

 

Inej paused in the hallway, her hand halfway to knocking. She could hear an argument going on inside, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to interrupt. But, she figured her neighbor would probably appreciate having her cats gone. She really hadn’t given him much choice earlier, and she felt bad about that, although he had seemed fine enough with it. Or at least, he had allowed it.

She took a deep breath and knocked. She was just here to pick up her cats.    
  
“Would you- no, I’m telling you, that’s wrong! No, come on, use your common sense. If-” The voice cut off as Inej knocked again, louder. 

Finally, the door opened, and the owner of the apartment was standing in front of her, Alina peeking out from under his collar. 

Inej stiffled a giggle at the sight. “Hey, sorry, it sounds like I’m interrupting…? But the landlord left, so I came back to take my cats off of your hands so they don’t trouble you anymore.”

“Interrupting… oh. No, you’re not interrupting,” he said. 

“Oh, I thought I heard arguing…”

He looked sheepish. “You did.” He pushed the door open further, and Inej saw Petyr sitting on the coffee table, his chest puffed out. There was no one else in sight. 

“Were you… arguing with my cat?” Inej wasn’t sure she believed it. Sure, she had conversations with her cats all the time. But she lived with them, they were her roommates. This guy was a complete stranger that she had quiet literally dumped her cats on and ran.

“Petyr is quite the conversationalist,” he joked dryly. 

Inej laughed. “Well, I can leave him here if you want to finish your conversation, but I figured you would want them out of your hair.”

“They were both actually quite well behaved,” he commented, but extracted Alina out from where she was curled on his shoulder. She let out a plaintive mew as she was handed back to Inej. 

“I’m glad to hear that,” Inej said as she tucked Alina back into her hoodie pouch, where she promptly curled up and closed her eyes. “Alina’s a kitten, so she can be a handful sometimes. And Petyr… well, Petyr is something else.”

The man’s eyes gleamed and the corner of his mouth twitched up. “I like him.”

Inej laughed again. “Well, I’ll have to keep that in mind next time I need a cat sitter. For real though, thank you for watching these guys. I don’t know what I would have done otherwise.”

“Anytime,” he responded, and Inej thought he looked distracted. 

She crossed over to the couch and scooped up Petyr, who let out a low hiss but otherwise acquiesced to being held. “If you ever need back into your apartment, or anything else, let me know,” she said as she passed him in the doorway.

Inej was halfway down the hall when she heard him yell, “Wait!”

She paused and turned around, arms full of fluffy cat. “Think of something already?”

“What’s your name?”

Inej’s eyes widened as she realized her poor manners. She had asked this man to watch her cats without even introducing herself. But to be fair, he hadn’t given her his name either, and they met when she caught him breaking into her apartment. So maybe they were beyond manners. 

“Inej,” she called down to him. 

“Inej,” he repeated. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Kaz.”


End file.
